Through the net people develop friendships with others purporting to be from the UK or USA. At one point, the foreign friend sends gifts with the condition that once the tax at customs is paid, the gift will be sent to the stated address.

At this point, bribe is demanded in the name of the customs house but the gift never arrives even after the money plus a bribe is given.

People in the end blame the customs. Airport sources say that in the last few years, more than one hundred people fell in this trap.

Assistant commissioner of Dhaka Customs House Solaiman Hossain said: “When the bribe is asked no one comes to lodge a complaint; after the money is paid to the fraudster, they come to the customs house.”

Customs never asks money for any valid charge over phone and goods arriving at customs is not even related to the potential receiver. The only task of the customs is to collect tax and keep an eye to prevent the import of contraband items, said Solaiman.

What is astonishing is that those who are being swindled are educated and some even do not want to admit that they have been hoodwinked.

Rupa from Sirajganj had a relation with a person called David on social media who sent her a gift box supposed to contain, mobile, pounds, jewelry and cosmetics.

On Feb 17, she was informed that a parcel had come in her name at the airport and at one point a foreigner called Rupa and asked $ 600 as custom fees.

As Rupa adds: “I told my mother to send money to the address; the man phoned me and told me that the gifts will be sent soon. Later, he called and said that since jewelry was scanned at the airport an additional Tk 400,000 will have to be handed out. Suspicious, I went to the airport and talked to the armed police who then arrested Nigerian citizen Joshua David, 32. David had called Rupa asking for the money.”

The airport police say that in most cases the fraudsters target women. Police SP of armed police battalion, Alamgir Hossain, says: “A group of fraudsters has been deceiving people and they identify themselves as British citizens. Recently we arrested one person of such a group.”

People in society should remain vigilant before they accept gifts from unknown persons, he warned.